


kiss me on the mouth (and set me free)

by hemothorax



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Feelings Realization, Happy Ending, I SWEAR THIS IS SOFT ITS ONLY ANGST FOR A MOMENT, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Light Angst, M/M, Minghao-centric, Strangers to Lovers, and hes Not good with feelings, angst?? idk kinda??, at a frat party, i swear it gets happier its just real sad for a moment, it touches on emotional abuse w minghao's past relationship, its just a lot of building to verhao, minghao is a workaholic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-01 13:26:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13295826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hemothorax/pseuds/hemothorax
Summary: "change… we don’t like it, we fear it. but we can’t stop it from coming. we either adapt to change, or we get left behind. it hurts to grow. anybody who tells you it doesn’t, is lying. but here’s the truth: sometimes, the more things change, the more they stay the same. and sometimes, oh, sometimes, change is good. sometimes, change is… everything." - meredith greya fic in which everything changes way too fast for minghao to keep up with, but he can't help but think about that boy from his calculus class.





	kiss me on the mouth (and set me free)

**Author's Note:**

> anyway idk how good this will be but verhao dESERVES MORE. i tried to make this good and longer than my usual one-shots so. i hope this satisfies u starving verhao shippers. its very loosely based off:  
> \- bite by troye sivan  
> \- e.v.o.l by marina and the diamonds  
> \- lonely hearts club by marina and the diamonds  
> follow me on twitter and send verhao related things please: @hanhaos

 

 

Another day. A different city. A different home.

Minghao looked up at the university dorms, a backpack and a large suitcase with another bag stacked on top of it beside him. His other hand had papers in them that contained the information he needed; a map of the school, his classes and classrooms and class schedules, and the most important thing as of right now, his dorm number.

_Dorm 314. Third floor._

He looked back down at his paper, just to be certain, and then stared back up at the school. His stomach twisted a little, thinking about how hard it's going to be for him. He was allowed to transfer school between his first and second year because of a huge scandal that his school had, many other school accepting applications from the old school's students. Of course, the students had to finish out the school year and wait until they had a break to transfer, so he wasn't the only one there. Many students decided to wait until the beginning of the school year and join in with the new first years.

"Hey!"

An unfamiliar voice broke his thoughts, and Minghao turned to the source of the voice. He spotted a boy with black hair and squishy cheeks, his small eyes slanted upwards. He jogged towards him, wearing a bright orange shirt that had the words 'Star Studio' across the chest in a circle, and a picture of a star inside the word circle (how surprising). The boy stopped in front of the taller, and Minghao bowed and quietly muttered a greeting as the other did the same.

"Do you like dancing?" The boy asked, smiling brightly and turning his eyes into little slits.

Minghao nodded quietly, looking down at his paper, "It's my major."

The black haired guy clapped his hands together, nodding, "Awesome, we'll be classmates!"

Minghao's eyebrows raised, wondering if there was more to the conversation than just small talk about his dance major.

"Well, since you obviously are good at dancing and like to dance, do you wanna try out for our little dance team we have?" He gestured to the bright orange shirt, his voice going up in hope at the end.

Minghao was about to deny straight away, but he heard his moms voice in the back of his head.  _You better join some clubs at this new school! It's a great opportunity and looks amazing on resumes!_

Minghao hesitated a little, and the other boy reached into his back pocket, pulling out a pamphlet that had the same logo on the front. It was simple and minimalistic, black and orange, probably their official colors.

"Oh! I'm Hoshi by the way, but my actual name is Soonyoung, I'm a third year here. We're currently just a duo, just me and another guy named Junhui, but we're recruiting a few people because we wanna be a dancing team instead of just a duo," Minghao saw Soonyoung look at a shorter boy with sharp eyes and a suitcase walking past them.

He had found his next target.

"Auditions are this weekend after orientation, please come by and try out! We'd love to see you there... uh.."

"Minghao."

"Minghao!"

Soonyoung said a quick goodbye, jogging over and stopping the other student, nearly scaring him out of his skin. Minghao put the pamphlet with the rest of his papers, starting to make his way out of that area and towards the doors where he'd find his dorm. The building was a bit cooler than outside, even if today was a cooler day than it had been the past week. No sun beating down on him, it was instead hidden behind a layer of clouds, but it was still in the warmer temperatures as fall started to creep up on the trees.

Minghao glanced around, spotting an elevator and walking to it with his bags and suitcase in his hands. He waited for the elevator patiently, the doors opening to reveal no other students inside, and he stepped in comfortably. He pressed the '3' button, the doors starting to close as another student walked into the building. Minghao pretended not to hear the other guy as the doors closed, and felt just a twinge of guilt on his ride up to his floor. The doors opened and he stepped out, easily finding his way to his room thanks to the plaques by the elevators, saying what rooms were on what side. His room was a little down the hall, but close to the elevators, and he knocked on the door to see if his dorm mate had gotten there already.

There was no response, so Minghao opened the door, glancing around, but there was no sign of another person, so he strode in and closed the door behind him. The door was left unlocked for his dorm mate to arrive, and looked at the two beds. The actual bed part was raised off the ground, the bottom obviously having room for storage. Minghao didn't have much, despite having traveled part way across South Korea for this school. There were built in desks next to the beds, the head of the beds pressing against the wall, a little window in the center of the room that looked out towards the campus.

_I'm probably going to fall out of my bed._

Not even five minutes later, the door to the dorm was opened, drawing Minghao's attention to the noise.

"Hey, you're the guy that didn't wait for me in the elevator."

Minghao wanted to groan, hoping the guy didn't hate him since he has to live with him now.

"I'm Mingyu, a second year." The guy, now named Mingyu, instead held his hand out for a handshake.

Minghao took it, bowing slightly, "Minghao."

Mingyu smiled, one of his teeth getting caught on his bottom lip, "I hope we become good friends!"

 

**\---**

Days rolled by surprisingly fast, the orientation going by with Minghao's head in a daze and classes started up faster than he could really comprehend. He had his journals and binders and backpack with him as he made his way to his first class, second year calculus.

_Seriously? Math? This early in the morning? I must have done something horrible in a past life to deserve this._

Minghao was wearing jeans and a t-shirt with a jacket draped over his shoulders, orange tinted sunglasses over his eyes as he carried his items towards the wing that had his class. Luckily for him, it was his only class of the day, but he had three other classes the next day, nearly back to back.  _Maybe I should have bought a bike._

He scrolled through social media on his phone while walking, headphones in to show that he didn't want to be spoken to. Despite his demeanor and the obvious headphones in his ears, he still felt a tap on his shoulder. His first instinct was to turn around and glare at whoever was bothering him, but he stopped with his mouth open as a familiar face grinned at him.

"Hi, Minghao!" Soonyoung smiled, falling in step beside him, "What class do you have right now?"

Minghao decided to leave his earbud out, keeping one in, but on a low volume, "Calculus. Year two."

Soonyoung let out a noise of acknowledgement, "Wow, that's hard. I'm taking it too, but I guess we have it on different days."

Minghao hummed, putting his phone in his pocket to be respectful to his elder, "What class do you have?"

"I have microbiology. It's my minor, but we're in the same building. I figured we could become something less than strangers on our walk to the north side of campus."

Minghao smiled a little, shrugging and letting Soonyoung talk about whatever he wanted to talk about.

"So, are you coming to the audition today?"

"Huh?"

"The audition. Jun and I would love to see your talent, and we already have one other member we recruited yesterday. We'd like one more member to make our team a quartet instead of a trio, and It'd be really cool if it was you since I kinda know you. The others that could show up are probably strangers, who knows how they act?"

Minghao glanced at him, "How do you know how  _I_ act. You've barely even met me."

Soonyoung paused for a moment, then continuing to talk, "Well, yeah, but I know you more than other people I told to come to auditions, and I can already tell you're a funny and nice guy. So, there's that going for you. And you're Chinese, right?"

Minghao nodded, staring up at the trees as they passed.

"Well, Junhui is also Chinese and it'd be really cool for you two to become friends, y'know?"

Another nod from Minghao made Soonyoung smile a little more, his cheeks puffing up a little as they opened the door to the north commons.

"My class is to the right, I'll see you hopefully tonight, Hao!"

They waved goodbye to each other, Minghao taking the paper with his schedule on it out of his pocket and looking at it, then looking up and around for room B04. He started to walk around the left part of the floor, checking every room, but failing to find his classroom. Now was a time he was thankful he actually left a little early, because he thought he'd have a little trouble finding his class.

_All the rooms here start with A.. is it on the second floor, or further down the hall?_

Minghao's shoulder ended up colliding with something else- some _one_ , actually. His schedule paper fell from his hand, as did his notebook and pencil case.

"Ah, I'm really sorry! I just.. wasn't looking where I was going."

Minghao looked up, his eyes looking to the perpetrator of this crime. He wasn't expecting to find an actual god standing next to him. Sharp jaw, light eyes that gave off slightly foreign vibes, pretty lips and soft-looking hair.

"I'm very sorry, let me help you get your stuff."

The boy picked up Minghao's fallen items, Minghao just watching quietly as they were handed back to him. The boy stole a glance to his schedule paper, his eyes brightening up a little. Minghao felt something in his chest, not painful, but like someone lightly dragged their nail up the inside of his sternum.

"You have calc two too?"

Minghao nodded, grabbing his journal and pencil case, letting the other stare at his schedule.

"Ah! It's on the second floor."

The other was about to walk away without a proper greeting- and Minghao's schedule.

"Um.. I'd like my schedule back, please."

The other turned around, his cheeks a little red from embarrassment, holding the paper out to him with a slight bow, "Sorry, here you go. I'm Hansol, a first year."

Minghao returned it, offering a little smile, "Minghao, second year. I'm assuming we have calculus together?"

Hansol nodded, scratching the back of his neck, "Yeah, I just realized the alphabet corresponds with the level its on. Our class is on the second floor."

"Lead the way, I, uh, wanna sit by you, if that's no trouble. Ive only met three people after moving here.."

Hansol raised an eyebrow, "What about the people from your first year?"

Minghao followed Hansol, answering the question quietly, "I'm one of the students from the scandal school. The students that moved here weren't friends with me, so I'm starting out fresh here."

Hansol nodded quietly, seemingly lost in his own thoughts, "Who have you met so far?"

"A tall guy named Mingyu is my dorm-mate, and a guy named Soonyoung wants me to join his dance team."

"Oh, I know Mingyu. He told me about you, you closed the elevator door on him."

Minghao groaned a little, sighing, "Yeah, that was me."

"And Soonyoung, he wants you in his dance team? You must be really good. Do you major in dance?"

Minghao nodded, glancing at the clock on his phone, "Is there an elevator? Our class starts in five minutes.."

Hansol looked at his own phone, bringing up what looked like a school map, and leading them down another hallway, towards two big metal doors that was obviously an elevator. The two rode up to their class in a comfortable silence, both silently agreeing to sit next to each other in the back row. The class started not long after they sat and got their supplies out, the professors voice filling the large classroom as the first lesson started.

**\---**

"...Soonyoung?"

Minghao called into the practice room, unsure as to where he was supposed to go. The pamphlet he was holding told him here, but didn't specify  _which_ practice room. Most of the people probably knew what one, but Minghao was clueless, making him a little anxious and shy.

"Are you here for the auditions?"

A smooth voice spoke from the corner, and he turned to see a tall man with a face that surely belonged to modeling.

"Um.. yeah. Which room is it? It didn't specify on the pamphlet Soonyoung gave me..."

The other guy pointed to the room all the way at the end (which wasn't really that far, but still a little walk).

"I'm Jun, I'd assume Soonyoung told you we were a duo together?"

Minghao nodded, looking up at him with slightly nervous hands, "Is there something specific we were supposed to do for auditions? What's it even like?"

Jun chuckled a little, smiling warmly, "No, we all just do a quick dance together and then the team talks to see who we like and then we send out an email if you made it or not."

Minghao hums in acknowledgement, thanking him before making his way to the room that was pointed out earlier. Minghao had changed into a t-shirt and joggers, bringing a small bag of his usual dance needs just in case. He made sure he had water, a protein bar, and even another shirt just in case his tee got too hot (but he was typically fine). He opened the door, glancing around the room to find only a few other people there he didn't recognize (which, actually, was everybody but Soonyoung and that one kid he ran up to right after they met).

"Minghao! You came!"

Soonyoung ran over, squeezing Minghao's thin frame into a hug, then gesturing over to the only other familiar face in the room, "Thats our other member, Chan. Well, our little Channie. He's a first year, but he skipped a grade so he's two years younger than you."

Chan whined a little, pouting at the over-share mouth vomit, and Soonyoung lead Minghao to the younger, telling everyone that they would start in five more minutes, giving extra time to anybody who could be late. The three of them made small talk, Jun joining in after a few minutes and smiling. Minghao grew to learn that Chan loved dancing and that the four of them were all majoring in dance. Soonyoung was the leader of the dance team, having made it at the end of last year (and Jun bragged about the duo going to a dance competition and winning second place). They technically weren't supposed to be recruiting people like it was a school funded event on the first day, but they did anyway because the school didn't care and even let them use the little practice room they were currently in.

As the dance routine started, Minghao learned that both Soonyoung and Jun were very serious about dancing, and made it clear they only wanted a quartet, so only one of the five people (including Minghao) that showed up for auditions were going to be added in. The routine that was created was intense, and Jun was the main judge because he wasn't actually dancing due to an injury in his ankle that was healing up.

Jun's eyes followed them all, seeming to see every movement made in the room. His eyes were sharp and didn't miss a single detail of any dancer. Didn't miss the way the guy near the back has a hitchhikers thumb, the way Minghao's body was very flexible, the way Chan was extremely precise in executing the movements, not a single detail. Well, maybe one detail, but everybody missed it because nobody heard the door opening while the music was playing. It wasn't until Minghao noticed Jun wasn't watching that he realized someone else was in the room.

He glanced around quickly, the curiosity always taking hold of his mind, his eyes landing on where Jun was showing someone a few pages of what looked like notes. The other boy looked up, accidentally making eye-contact with him, and he realized that Jun was talking to Hansol. Minghao gave a small wave and a smile, turning his attention back to Soonyoung where they learned a few more moves to add on to their routine. Soonyoung was talking quickly, a Minghao not catching everything that was being said, but getting the gist of everything once they started moving together.

"Ready to do the whole thing?"

Minghao nodded along with the others, staring at their reflections in the mirror, his eyes wandering around the practice room very briefly out of habit before returning back on Soonyoung's face. Their gazes crossed, and they both smiled at each other, Soonyoung using his forearm to wipe the sweat drenched hair off his forehead.

The music pumped through the room, and Minghao let himself focus on the beats and the steps, the exact timings and every little movement he learned. He moved quickly, his being sinking into the sounds of the music they danced too, and before he even knew it, the song was over and they finished their dance. Clapping was heard during the short pause between the song looping, then Soonyoung walked over to stop the song, everybody turning their attention towards Jun and Hansol, the source of the clapping noise.

Soonyoung stepped into view of everybody, hushing the two down before speaking, "Okay, that's all we needed from today, so, we'll get your emails and tell you who made it over the next week. The response should be within the next few days, so don't worry."

Everybody nodded or hummed, dispersing to grab their items they brought. Minghao moved over towards the door where his little bag was, grabbing his giant water bottle and opening the lid to take quick chugs from it. A bit of water fell from the corner of his mouth, but it just mixed in with the light sweat he had gotten, and he grabbed a little sweat rag to wipe his face and neck with so he wouldn't feel disgusting.

"Hey, Minghao, right?"

He looked back up, wiping his mouth and nodding.

"You did really good. I liked it."

Hansol smiled shyly, then walking away when Jun called him over again.

Minghao's eyebrows fluttered together, his hand scratching his chest and trying to get rid of that feeling that lingered there. He needs to draw this line and keep it there before it gets worse.

**\---**

"He's a workaholic."

"No, dude, he's new to the school, he's just trying to make sure he doesn't fall behind.."

"Workaholic. You recruited a workaholic."

Minghao pretended that he couldn't hear them, trying to concentrate on his calculus assignment he was given today. It was three pages of work in a text book he had a hard time understanding, despite having lived here since he was in his teens. Math was always easy for Minghao. Sure, maybe it started off kinda hard when he was trying to learn it, but once he got the hang of the equations he was supposed to do, it was a breeze. It's not hard, just time consuming. But, then again, Minghao likes time consuming things. An easy distraction that benefit him in many ways when he needed a small escape, and maybe a catch up on studies.

"Okay, fine. Maybe he is. But-"

"That settles it. We're taking him to Jeonghan's party."

Minghao stopped his work, looking up at Jun and Soonyoung, who so annoyingly decided to pick him out at the campus cafe and sit across the table from him.

"I'm not going to any party. I don't have time."

"Oh come on, what could you  _possibly_ need to do. We've been here for an hour, you literally finished a project and a literature assignment. You're about to finish your calculus assignment right in front of us."

Minghao wanted to argue back at Jun, but he couldn't find the right things to say. Minghao mumbled a small insult in Mandarin, knowing Jun probably wouldn't understand it that well.

"Just because I'm from Shenzhen doesn't mean I don't understand Mandarin, moron."

Minghao flipped him off, rolling his eyes before looking back at his text book, rubbing his eyes under his lenseless glasses. Jun reached over to lightly smack the side of Minghao's head, causing a small noise of pain from the younger.

"I don't  _want_ to go."

"You don't have a choice now that you're friends with us. You still have two groups of friends to get to know. You only know five of us so far-"

"I don't want to know them. I'm perfectly fine knowing just you guys and slowly learning the names and becoming acquaintances with the rest. I already have to deal with Mingyu by living with him, and I'm in a team with you two, and I have Hansol in Calculus. The one I like the most is Chan because he at least respects me."

Jun leaned back in his chair, groaning up to the ceiling and rubbing his face. Minghao was expecting more commentary from him, but instead Soonyoung spoke up.

"Well, you should take a break. I haven't seen you not work the past four days."

"I took breaks."

"Yeah, coming down to the studio to drown yourself in non-textbook work doesn't count as a break." Jun pointed to Soonyoung after he said that, nodding his head.

"See! You _are_ a workaholic." Jun exclaimed, patting the open calculus book for emphasis.

It was obvious he wouldn't be getting his calculus homework done in the cafe, so instead, he started to put his papers back in his journal and text book, "Well, while you guys have your little date here, I'm gonna be up in my dorm. Working."

Soonyoung made a face, flicking Jun's shoulder, "I don't wanna date him."

"Aw bro, you don't?"

"No dude, you're not my type."

"I'm  _everyones_ type."

"I literally have a thing for Wonwoo and you're trying to pull that?"

"Damn, that hurts."

Minghao put his belongings in his little bag, standing up, but not moving when he feels Soonyoung's hand on his wrist.

"Do consider coming to the party, though. We think it's a great chance to show you everyone else."

He looked down at Soonyoung, his lips tilted down in a pout with his bottom lip jutting out.

"Fine. I'll consider it."

Both Soonyoung and Jun did quiet cheers, turning to each other and high-fiving as the youngest started to walk out of the cafe. Minghao sighed, going down the hallway towards the elevator that was closest to his dorm. He was hoping Mingyu would let him work in peace, and that he would just be watching Naruto on his computer (like he has been the past three days). Minghao, unfortunately, remembered that he was in the north dorm cafe instead of the west in order to try and get peace. Rumor had it that the north cafe was peaceful and not a lot of people usually were there at this time of day, and while that was true, he forgot the factor that both Jun and Soonyoung were friends, and both had dorms in the north wings.

He found the exit easily, stepping outside and greeting the sun that beat down on the pavement. It was warm out today, the last few weeks of summer finally dying out and drifting into fall. There were other students walking around, some enjoying the sun, some complaining about how it was still hot outside, and everything in between. Minghao was still trying to get used to his new college, the school life here and the kind of community it was. Minghao didn't like the huge change. He didn't expect himself to like or get accustomed to it quickly, but on the inside he was grateful for the people that he's met so far. Maybe his mom was right when she told him that joining activities would be better for him.

The walk was about ten minutes, the two wings about half a mile from each other, maybe a little less. He walked towards the large entrance doors, moving to open one when it opened for him. He looked at the person who opened the door for him, his eyes meeting a smiling Hansol.

"Oh, hi Hansol." Minghao smiled a little.

There it was. That feeling. It bugged him, he shouldn't have that. Minghao hated it, he wanted to get to his room already.

"Hi Minghao."

He realized he was just standing in front of the door after a moment, then quickly scurried inside so he didn't have to hold the door for any longer.

"What'cha up to?"

Minghao grit his teeth together a little, "On my way back to the dorm, sorry. It's really important. I'll see you around."

He didn't wait for a goodbye, but heard one being called after him while he took large steps towards the elevator. Once he was in the safety of the elevator, he couldn't help but feel another pang of guilt.

_It's okay, you said you were busy. It's fine._

Minghao pursed his lips together, trudging back to his dorm- almost resenting the fact that he did that to Hansol. He feels bad that Hansol might be a little hurt, but the boy was young and can recover from it pretty fast. Why was he letting this bother him so much? He did something a bit worse to Mingyu on their first day, and barely felt bad.

Whatever. He needed something to distract him. Like his calculus homework. Minghao's hand lifted to open the door, glancing around to see Mingyu laying in bed, also working on what looked like science homework.

"Hey, how was the cafe, too many distractions?"

Minghao sighed a little, "Not enough."

**\---**

Minghao was sneaky. He could usually get away with things. Sometimes he ignored texts, saying he was in the shower, but he was really still working on that dance routine that he wanted to have done for his class (actually, he just made dance routines to distract himself. He always said it was for the future, maybe a dance competition). Sometimes he could pretend he doesn't know what others were saying and pull the 'I'm not completely fluent in Korean' card, even if it sometimes didn't work because of Jun. Other times, he couldn't get away from the inevitable.

Three knocks at his door signified that someone was over to see him. Minghao was the only one in his dorm right now, as Mingyu went out to meet up with a guy named Seokmin and some other friends. He vaguely remembers a Wonwoo, and the name sounded familiar, but he must've not been paying attention when the Wonwoo guy was mentioned previously.

He groaned, setting down his pencil from the thesis he was currently starting to plan to stand up and answer the door. He opened the door, coming face to face with Jun and Soonyoung.

"Can I help you?"

Jun and Soonyoung didn't even say hi, they pushed their way in past Minghao while talking to each other.

"Um, no, get out."

Both of them turned to face the younger, looking at him and then back at Minghao's closet. Right then, it clicked.

"I'm not going to Jeonghan's party. I'm busy, I have a thesis to finish, and then I have to study chapter two for class tomorrow. Plus, I don't even know who this _Jeonghan_ is."

Soonyoung groaned, grabbing Minghao's shoulders as Jun searched through his pants and shirts, "Let loose, dude! You're such a workaholic, live for at least tonight, okay? We promise it'll be fun."

There wasn't much Minghao could do, not between the fact Jun saved his files and shut his computer down and the stomach twisting guilt that Minghao had when he thought about refusing. But Minghao liked his routine. Class, comeback, study, dance, shower, study some more, and sleep. He managed to eat enough between all of it, often eating during his studying and during classes, and it was a nice routine that Minghao had. The days that were different were weird to him. Sometimes they were good, really, but he just likes familiarity. It was already a huge leap to move schools, and even to move out for college, Minghao wasn't sure how much he would like so much change all at once.

But he finally felt bad. He doesn't wanna lose people just because he's in a routine. Sometimes change is good, sometimes you have to cross that line. 

Tonight is a night to break routine for once. Just this once, then he can go back to working his routine.

"Fine. Just tonight. I'm not having many drinks, and I'm not going to do this again."

Both Jun and Soonyoung cheered, high-fiving again and scoured his closet. They forced Minghao to sit on his bed as they looked through the various clothes he had, all while he idly scrolled through instagram. He saw a few pieces of clothing that he hadn't worn in a long time- specifically some ripped jeans and a bomber jacket, and another piece of clothing he didn't see fast enough. It seemed like hours while the reality was probably only ten minutes until Jun finally agreed with Soonyoung on an outfit. Minghao looked at it in curiosity, raising his eyebrows and glancing back at them.

Black ripped jeans, an over-sized white t-shirt with english print, a red flannel, and black boots. That was the outfit.

"That's the outfit?"

Both of them turned to Minghao, then back at the outfit, then back at Minghao. Then they nodded.

"Do you have eyeliner?"

"No."

"Liar. You wore some a few days ago."

He groaned, flopping back down onto his bed and sighing, "Why are you guys dressing me up? Isn't it just some party?"

"It's Jeonghan's party. You're gonna meet our other friends, and hang out with a ton of upperclassmen. And, hey, maybe you'll find some good dick tonight," Soonyoung grinned at him, Jun slapping the back of his head lightly.

"I don't take dick, I do the dicking." Minghao grumbled out, going back on his phone and trying not to let it drop on his face.

"...Some good pussy tonight."

"I'm gay."

"Ass."

"You're hopeless."

Clothes were thrown at Minghao, his phone ultimately falling and landing on his neck, making him cough for a good minute before sitting up and glaring at the two. Both of them pointed to each other, and the youngest just rolled his eyes.

"Put the clothes on and I'm gonna put some eyeliner on you," Jun grinned, "You're gonna look sexy but smart, a great package for anybody that strikes you up."

Minghao groaned again in protest, but gave up with the feeling that they wouldn't give in as easily as he had hoped. Instead, he let Jun rummage through his desk for eyeliner while he stripped off his original outfit and threw on the chosen outfit. Once it was on, Soonyoung gasped, falling dramatically against Mingyu's bed.

"Junnie! He's growing up! Look at him, a real heart snatcher!"

Soonyoung earned another slap to the back of the head.

 

Minghao learned that Jeonghan's frat boy place was about a ten minute walk from campus, but since the frat houses were on the east side of campus and Minghao was housed in the west wing dorms, it was about a twenty minute walk instead. Jun had forcibly put slightly smoked eyeliner on Minghao, along with putting earrings and a few rings on him as well. Oh, and a belt.

"You're gonna be the star of the party, dude. You look so good, full homo. But platonically." Jun pat Minghao's back.

That was the nth time that he rolled his eyes within the past hour.

"You're both so embarrassing, how do you have friends?"

"How come you're still our friend?"

"I have to be because of star studio."

This time, Soonyoung pat Minghao's back. But, less pat and more rough-slap-shove to the shoulder.

"C'mon, we're not that bad. We're helping you get out, break that boring ass routine you have. How are you not exhausted from it already?"

Minghao took a moment, shrugging and sighing, "I like to work on what I love, and I love dancing, so it doesn't even seem like work to me. It's easy, y'know?"

The two others hummed and nodded in agreement, taking a turn down a street near campus. It was painfully obvious which frat house was hosting the party due to the bass that seemed to be echoing for quite a while and the amount of college aged kids hanging around the front yard. He could faintly hear some overplayed bass boosted western song that people often went club dancing to, and as they neared the house they could see all the types of booze and liquor lined up in the kitchen window.

Jun turned to Soonyoung, "It's your turn to be the DD."

"Uh, no it's not, I was DD at Jeonghan's last party."

"That was months ago, I was DD at the other party."

Minghao sighed, rolling his eyes, "None of us drove. Just crash here, or I'll be the DD if I'm still here by the time you're both shitfaced."

Two pairs of eyebrows raised (read: not Minghao's).

" _If_ you're still here? Are you gonna ditch us, Haomie?"

Minghao gagged at the impromptu nickname he was given by Jun, and simply nodded.

"If I get bored I'm gonna go back home. We didn't drive, and I don't wanna sit in a corner and watch you two get shitfaced only to carry you both back to your dorms. You're both probably crashing here for the night, sorry."

Both of them groaned but reluctantly agreed anyway, walking up to the driveway of the booming frat house. There was a guy with light-ish brown hair standing at the door, talking to someone else that was a little bit taller with a lanky figure and sharp jaw.

"Jeonghan! Wonwoo!" Jun grinned, walking up to hug them both, Soonyoung easily following suit.

Minghao didn't really know what to do, so he kinda stood a little bit from them, smiling politely as they caught up for a moment before Soonyoung turned to shine the spotlight onto him. Minghao pulled at the neck of his tee, even though it was actually a bit loose on him.

"This is Minghao, he's new to the school and joined our dance team."

Minghao smiled again, bowing politely and taking their hands to shake. The guy that was named Jeonghan smiled and pulled him up a little, taking him in a hug before releasing him.

"I'm Jeonghan, a fourth year here. Wonwoo's the same age as Soonyoung and Jun," He smiled at the younger, keeping his hand on Minghao's shoulder.

"That's cool. Is everyone here that I'm supposed to meet?" Minghao put his attention on the two he was more familiar with, then glancing at the open front door.

"Yeah, they should be. The only one that's not here yet to my knowledge is Chan, but he texted me saying he was running late from finishing a paper."

Minghao nodded, excusing himself to go inside where it was a bit warmer and grab maybe a drink. He didn't want to get drunk, maybe buzzed at the most, because he wanted to retreat back to his dorm when he got tired. He was sure he could eventually figure out the way, but he wouldn't be able to do it if he was shitfaced. He navigated his way to the kitchen, looking at the alcohol that was all spread out, then going to the fridge and hoping there was a beer there. Luckily, Minghao's wish was granted as he grabbed a bottle, then effortlessly popping the cap off using the kitchen counter, tossing the bent bottle cap into the trash can.

"How'd you do that?"

Minghao looked up, his heart lurching and looking at the person that was speaking to him. Hansol glanced at Minghao's outfit, smiling a little and gesturing to his own outfit.

"We kinda match, nice!"

Minghao's heart did a little leap, and he willed it to stop doing that. The feeling was unnerving and weird, and he didn't like the fact that he felt something in his chest each time Hansol was around him, or even just when he was mentioned. However, Minghao couldn't look away from the other. He wore plain black jeans, a black tee, and to cover up he had a blue, red, and white flannel on. His hair was slightly darker than the last time he had seen it, making his features softer and matching his coffee brown eyes.

"Yeah, Jun and Soonyoung picked it out for me," Minghao forced a small smile, taking another swig of his drink.

He didn't pay attention to the gaze of the younger, watching his adams apple bob up and down for a few seconds before Minghao detached the bottle from his mouth.

"I didn't peg you to be much of a party person," Hansol stepped closer, standing next to him and leaning against the counter with a red solo cup in his hands.

The liquid inside was clear, so it was either white rum, vodka, or water. Hansol, however, didn't seem at all drunk, so it was probably water.

"Yeah, me neither. I originally wasn't gonna come tonight. I just have homework that I wanna finish."

Hansol looked down into his cup while talking, his brows slightly furrowed in thought, "You do a lot of work, I almost never see you outside of school. It's nice to see you not working, y'know?"

The way he said that made it sound like he cared for Minghao, but maybe he was just overthinking it. Hansol's just trying to make light conversation since they knew each other and were in the same friend group. Right? Right. Don't take it to heart, and for god's sake, stop having that feeling inside.

"Well.. I like my work. It's my way of relaxing, even if it isn't really relaxing," Minghao glanced at Hansol, finding himself unable to look away.

He admired Hansol's soft features, the way that it was lined by the sharpness of his jaw and his mouth. The softness of his hair, his cheeks, and his eyes cushioned those features, making a combo that was irresistible. Hansol's gaze moved, and Minghao looked away, deciding he'd take more than just one beer tonight.

"I guess if that's how you work, then good on you. I prefer to lay down and listen to music. But you listen to music probably daily while dancing." The tips of the younger's ears turned slightly red, for a reason Minghao didn't know.

It was a bit too warm in here. Was it? No, stop, maybe it's just the beer getting to him.

"Yeah, but I like music. Sometimes I listen without dancing because I let my mind move instead of my body. It's freeing to me, y'know?" Minghao smiled to himself and his understanding of a language that wasn't native to him.

Hansol stared at the older, long enough to bore two holes straight through Minghao's head, "That was strangely poetic, but it was cool. Do you write or something too?"

Minghao shook his head, shrugging, "I can't write creatively, the words probably wouldn't be able to come to me for what I'd want to describe. Plus, dancing is more expressive for what I want to get out, anyway."

Their already short exchange was cut even shorter as a few others walked into the kitchen, searching for drinks. Minghao took that chance to excuse himself, finding himself looking around the house for a doorway that would give him an empty space. The best place was probably upstairs, since the party had just started. Nobody would be in a bedroom yet, at least he hoped. He took the stairs up two at a time, a slight spring in his step as the noises from downstairs started to become fainter and muffled from the walls between him and the commotion.

Just as he had hoped, the upstairs was rather empty, only a bathroom being used. Unfortunately, there were noises that he'd much rather not hear come from a bathroom, so he stepped away and decided to look for another room that could hold Minghao until he could find the mental strength to go upstairs. There was a bedroom near the end of a short hallway, the door ajar and lights off, meaning there was probably nobody in there. He walked towards it, peeking his head in before the rest of his body and closing the door. He leaned against it, the coolness hitting his skin, even through the two layers he had on.

He turned the light on, glancing around the room and taking in the two beds that were in the room. One was a bit messy, and one was neatly made. There were obvious halves to the room, one being a little messy with a few nearly finished water bottles laying around, some notebooks and papers, and a slightly made bed, and then one side looking like it was straight out of an IKEA commercial. He tried not to snoop, but the neater side had a few pictures hanging above the bed, all of them featuring Wonwoo and a few other faces. He recognized a few of them, like Jeonghan, Jun, and Soonyoung (who was in most of them), but there were a few he didn't recognize. Hansol was in one of them, and Minghao stepped closer to look at the picture. It was Wonwoo posing with Hansol, a dog between them like it was their child.

"Minghao? You in here?"

He turned to the door, stepping closer and clearing his throat, "Yeah.. who is it?"

"Jun. Put your pants on, I'm coming in."

Minghao rolled his eyes, crossing his arms and staring at the door that swung to reveal Jun behind it. He slipped in quietly, closing the door behind him and put his hands on his hips.

"Why are you up here?" He spoke to Minghao using his native language, and they both know that he wouldn't be able to avoid questions like this, "A party is for socializing, you know. It's not for sitting in a strangers room all by yourself."

the younger groaned, setting his beer down on what he assumed was Wonwoo's desk, "Yeah, but.. it's a lot of people."

"Liar."

Minghao's eyes narrowed, his nose scrunching up just slightly, "How do you know that?"

"I saw you. You went upstairs after talking to Hansol."

"Because other people came into the room and I wanted a little bit of space."

Jun sighed, sitting down on the messier bed while Minghao still stood in front of him, "That's also a lie. You're not a very good liar. There's something up with you."

"There is no-"

"Did you do a weird drug? Did you do cocaine? Cause dude-" 

"I didn't do cocaine you absolute moron. I'm not that low."

Jun crossed his arms, imitating Minghao's pose, but failed to defend himself as the younger reached forward to smack his arm.

"Then what's up? You're off."

Minghao just shrugged, clenching his teeth together and looking away. The carpet was much more interesting anyway.

Then Jun gasped, and stood from his perch.

"I know why you're acting weird."

Minghao shook his head, his voice raising a little, "I am not acting-!"

"You like Hansol."

Minghao felt like something inside of him crashed together and exploded. The ashes invaded his chest, making it hard to breathe. That wasn't true, he didn't like Hansol. He barely knew him.

"Well, of course I like Hansol. He's one of our friends."

"Minghao, stop avoiding what I'm saying! You wanna go on a date with him!"

Minghao reached forward again, smacking Jun's shoulder, "Shut up or the whole house will hear you! Plus, I do  _not_ like him like that!"

"You can't say you don't like him like that when you keep looking at him like he's home."

**\---**

Minghao needed an escape. He needed to get out, because as Jun said those words, it felt like everything closed in on him. The walls seemed so much closer, the ceiling was right above his head, and god, when did this shirt get so tight on him? He couldn't hear anything but the blood rushing through his ears. He could faintly hear voices, were they calling his name? He couldn't remember. He locked himself in the dance studio, blasting whatever music he could find to overpower his thoughts. He had hastily thrown the shirt and plaid off, only sporting the black ripped jeans that clung to his hips.

Even those were starting to feel constricting and hot. He needed to take them off, but he wasn't sure if he or any of the others had ever left a pair of shorts here. He jogged to the wall of cabinets, opening the ones that belonged to him and the others, breathing out a sigh of relief when he grabbed a pair of Chan's basketball shorts. Surely he wouldn't mind, they were just shorts. The jeans were off in an instant, Chan's shorts (that were just a tad too loose before tightening the drawstring) now replacing the jeans on his hips. There wasn't an extra shirt, but Minghao didn't really care about a shirt. He just wanted shorts.

Despite jogging the entire way here, Minghao still was buzzing with energy. He was borderline jittery, needing to expel these feelings somewhere. His eyes were red and puffy. He didn't know why he would occasionally stop and take a few minutes to cry and heave like he had run a marathon with asthma and no inhaler. He would bounce back with his hands shaking and trying to drive out haunting memories he never wanted to think of again. He was changing, his mind was changing, and he couldn't change again. He changed too much, changing again would break him.

He wasn't the one really changing, it was more of his life was changing. He couldn't handle that right now, not with what was changing. Minghao could take any change in the world, but god, he couldn't have that kind of change. He just couldn't. He stopped and yelled that multiple times into the mirror, but then collapsed into a pile of sobs and heavy breathing. The music was loud enough that nobody would hear the wails he was making, but they didn't last long anyway. His little bouts were only here in there, but it was always when he paused to take a breath. Somehow, it seemed so hard to stop because all he wanted to do was continue dancing.

He drowned himself without realizing it. His brain caught the notion that if he stopped to get water then he would start crying again. Minghao was sick of crying, especially over him. He had moved on, he had gained a solid routine that wouldn't hurt him. Why was he crying now? Because he stopped. He can't stop. He needs to continue until he passes out, because then he can go to sleep without thinking of anything first. He pushed his body, his throat dry and his head screaming for proper oxygen as he breathed heavily. He was nearly done with this, he could get water in a moment.

But then his ankle twisted and he fell to the ground. The pain radiated through his leg, up his leg and slowly melting away as it reached his torso. He just laid on the cool ground, the song ending after a few moments and looping again. He didn't have the energy to reach down and caress the pulled ligament, his back was slick with all the sweat pouring from his pores. He was just tired. He was exhausted. He couldn't even dance properly. He couldn't do a step that he had done so many times before he couldn't even count. His muscles ached, adding to the pulsating pain from his ankle.

It was all so much, his vision became blurry again as he stared at the ceiling. How come he couldn't just execute the move? He was so dumb. He was an idiot, he couldn't even do something that he loved, how can he do a relationship? These feelings haunted him, they had to go away. He can't go through it again. He refused to.

His chest shook, his entire body curling on itself as a form of protection from the outside world. His arms raised to cover his head, his knees touching his chest as he created a ball of himself. The salty tears mixed with sweat, dripping down his face as his entire being shook with every breath he took. He could barely hear the music over his breathing and his sobbing, much less the sound of the door to the studio opening.

"Minghao!"

He didn't bother to look up, the voice only making him curl tighter into himself. The music stopped without warning, and he heard footsteps approaching him. Warm hands gently touched his torso, but he flinched, his head whipping up to stare at the figure through tear clouded eyes. He blinked, the tears falling and his vision clearing enough to make out the gray t-shirt that Jun was wearing earlier, and black jeans with plaid on top standing behind him. Both Jun and Hansol had come for him, to check up on him when he was at his worst.

"I don't like him, I can't not after what happened. It's always the same, every single time it's the same, I can't date him,  I can't like him. Not like this, it's all changing, it's all moving too fast and I just want my routine back-" Minghao had grabbed Jun's shirt, crying into it while spluttering out sentences that Hansol couldn't understand.

Jun let him, wrapping his arms around Minghao's naked torso and hoisting him into his lap to let him stain his shirt with tears and spit and snot- no matter how gross it might be later. Jun ran his fingers through his hair, slowly letting Minghao come down from whatever was holding him, letting him calm his emotions to a manageable wave compared to the hurricane that they first were.

Hansol ended up sitting next to Jun at some point, listening to the flurry of words coming out of Minghao's mouth, even if he couldn't understand the language he was spouting out in. They sat, the practice room quiet save for Minghao who was gradually growing quieter and quieter. His voice seemed to lose purpose, he was repeating the same syllables over and over, murmuring the same sentences in different rotations. His episode calmed down to a few tears, some sniffles and light breathing at some point, and the scrawny boy pulled away from Jun's shoulder to glance at them.

His eyes were glossy and his face was wet, his waterline an irritated red and slightly puffed up. The whites of his eyes were a bit red too, his eyeliner that was put on now lightly smeared across his temple from wiping his eyes so many times. He sniffled, looking at both of them, speaking in a language they'd both understand.

"Why did you come here?"

His voice was hoarse, throat constricted slightly in attempt to restrict the crying from bubbling up again. Both of the others wanted to know what was going on, but neither could understand.

"You ran out of the party after.." Jun sighed, switching to an easier language, "..after I said you liked him."

Minghao's jaw tensed, his eyes watering again and he fought the tears back, even if his eyes stung like a disturbed wasps nest resided behind them, "I can't like him, Jun. It's too much all at once. The change is too hard, I can't like him. But I do. And I don't want to," His voice grew tight and pitched, tears falling as he heaved breaths through words, "I'm gonna get broken again. I'm gonna get used and tortured again, I can't go through with that. He ruined me, Jun! He ruined everything about me, made me scared to change anything, and now  _everything_ is changing! It's all different, I can't do this right now," Minghao's voice cracked this time, speaking after a moment of heaving, "I don't want change. But I want to be free of my past."

Jun stared at him for a little while, Hansol not grasping a single thing that was happening, but all he wanted to do was to hold Minghao and protect him from whatever drove him to the edge like this. All he wanted was to hug him and become a rock for him, but he just couldn't ever seem to get through to him.

"Minghao, look at me," Jun ordered the younger to look up, water still drizzling from his eyes, "Change is scary. Sometimes you can't help but remember the past. But, damn it Minghao, let go. You have to, no matter what anybody in your past did. Sometimes change is good. Sometimes change is everything," Jun took a moment, rubbing his cheeks to wipe off a bit of the wetness, even if it would just accumulate a few moments later, "Change will free you of your past."

"I.. I don't mean to ruin the moment you're both having.. but I've only understood one sentence since I've been here.." Hansol spoke up quietly, the tips of his ears turning red from embarrassment.

Minghao glanced over at the younger, his shoulders slumped and slightly tensed, the expression on his face solemn and borderline vengeful. Minghao didn't have the courage to speak, too afraid his own voice would betray him and out himself to the one person he couldn't right now.

"I said something to Minghao at the party and it.. caused a reaction in him. It's my fault, don't worry, Sol." Jun pat Minghao's back reassuringly, mumbling quietly in his ear, "When you go home, think about what I said, okay?"

He simply nodded, moving off the older so he could get up. Warm arms detached from around him, leaving him colder while sitting on the floor. The previous pair of arms were soon replaced with a new set, comforting and soothing. He felt warm breath against his neck, and Hansol just stayed like that, hugging him and trying to keep him sane.

"I don't know what you just went through, but I'm here for you. I want to protect you, even if you're older."

Minghao hesitantly wrapped his thinner arms around him, a smile cracking it's way through the frown, "Thank you, Hansol."

After a few moments, the three of them were standing up and cleaning the small mess made in the room. Pain shot through Minghao's leg the moment he put pressure on it, causing a hiss to slip past his lips. There were two people on either side of him, helping him stand upright, putting minimal pressure on the injured ankle as they trekked down campus with Minghao in tow. They reached the west wing after about ten minutes (double the amount of time it would have taken if Minghao weren't injured), and Jun let Hansol take over, the oldest starting to make his way towards the north wing for his own dorm.

"Minghao?"

He looked at Hansol, the first year helping him towards the elevator.

"Yeah?"

He seemed to hesitate, then shaking his head and smiling, "Nothing, but just know that I'm here for you if you ever need anything. Tell Mingyu I said hi when he comes back."

Hansol pressed the button to go up for the older, letting Minghao walk by himself when it opened, "I'll see you tomorrow."

Minghao smiled, nodding and waving goodbye as the doors closed.

That night, his thoughts were conflicting, but they all orbited around one topic: Hansol Chwe.

**\---**

What really sucks is that because the injury happened while he wasn't scheduled to be in the practice room, the school couldn't provide crutches for him to keep the pain off his ankle in order to recover quickly. He had to pay a visit to the clinic, and they told him it wasn't super bad but if he wanted to recover quickly then he should probably take a break from dancing and favor his ankle. The ligament wasn't completely torn, but it was still bad. Not super bad, thank goodness, but his friends forced him on crutches anyway, but made him pay for it.

His walks to his classes are actually shorter now, as Soonyoung had one of those electric scooters that he let Minghao use. It was fun, zipping across the campus on the little thing, but he wasn't looking forward to giving it back to Soonyoung after it's use. Right now, though, he was going back to his dorm to drop off his supplies before going out to a nice sushi place with Soonyoung, Jun, and Hansol. His ankle was feeling better now, but he still had to put minimal pressure on it because it would take more than just two weeks for it to fully recover. Chan was gonna tag along too but his essay due date just got moved up because of someone else in his class being rude to the professor, so he's rushing to finish that at the moment.

They only allow Minghao with his scooter inside the building if he isn't on it, so he uses it as a temporary crutch whenever he has it with him, but as he was putting his school stuff away, he realized that he doesn't have a car, and can't bring his scooter with either. They won't allow it in the sushi place- he's tried before. He sighs, thinking about cancelling, but then reminding himself of how much of a pain in the ass both Soonyoung and Jun will be if he does. So, reluctantly, he takes his phone out to text both of them.

 

**to: call me soon**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

hey are you or jun at the sushi place yet?

_Sent at 4:01 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto**

**from: call me soon**

why you askin? you gonna ditch on us?'

_Sent at 4:02 PM_

 

**to: call me soon**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

i almost did but i actually need a ride cause of my foot

_Sent at 4:02 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto**

**from: call me soon**

yeah we're already there but hansol hasn't gotten here yet so i'd ask him

_Sent at: 4:04 PM_

 

**to: call me soon**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

ok thanks

_Sent at: 4:04 PM_

 

**to: skype ringtone dancer**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

hey soonyoung told me you werent at the sushi place yet can you give me a ride

_Sent at: 4:05 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto**

**from: skype ringtone dancer**

yeah i'll pick you up by your wing im in a black 2014 subaru impreza

_Sent at 4:06 PM_

 

**to: skype ringtone dancer**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

tysm i'll pay u that gas money

_Sent at 4:06 PM_

 

Minghao started to make his way out of his dorm, remembering to grab his wallet and make sure there's cash in there for the outing. They'd all be splitting the bill, despite Minghao saying that since it was his first outing with them (besides the party) that he should pay, so he had extra cash now that he had to put back into his bank account at some point. He never liked having so much cash on him because then using it usually resulted in getting less cash but more bills to carry, and it made his wallet uncomfortably thick. He limped his way to the elevator, starting to regret not taking his crutches, but not wanting to walk back and take longer. Hansol was probably waiting for him, and both Soonyoung and Jun  _are_ waiting on him.

He made it to the elevator well enough, leaning against the wall and pressing the floor level button, looking at his reflection in the mirror. Turtle neck with a jean jacket and black ripped jeans, circle lenses on his face and hair a little fluffy. The elevator doors opened again, letting Minghao hobble out. He flailed a little, forgetting that he didn't grab his crutches, and nearly fell back, but he managed to walk out of the building with no more injuries. He glanced around the front, looking for the car Hansol said that he was driving, but he instead nearly jumped out of his skin as his shoulder was tapped.

"Jesus christ, you scared the living shit out of me," Minghao smacked the younger's chest, causing them both to giggle as he flinched back a little.

"That was the plan, but I thought you were gonna have your crutches. So, I didn't yell in your ear this time."

Minghao's nose scrunched up, throwing a playful glare towards him and beckoning him over, "Come be my temporary crutch, we're not walking a lot anyway, are we?"

The other shook his head, moving forward and helping the injured walk easier, taking some of the weight off the torn ligament. The car was parked in the front row, making access easy for both of them, the windshield having an outline of where the wipers run across them. The inside was leather and a bunch of fake leis hung around the rear view mirror. Some coconut, some fake flowers, some just shells.

"You like Hawaii?"

Hansol nodded, leaning over to open the car door for him, "Yeah, I've always wanted to visit, but my mom send me some things from there whenever she gets to. I keep them here as kind of a reminder of them."

"Oh, sorry, are they in the U.S.?"

Minghao slid into his seat, but Hansol shut the door before answering, shaking his head while walking to the drivers side. He opened the car door and plopped down, starting the car as he shut it.

"No, they're in Hongdae, but they like to travel a lot. Even with Sophia, but they never fail to take care of her when they're home."

Both buckled the seat belts, Minghao reaching forward to turn on the radio as Hansol backed out of his parking space. The town was clearer than usual, as clear as it could really be in the middle of a big city, so traffic wasn't the worst, but the roads being so ridiculously woven together always made bad traffic. To both of them, though, because they had been here for so long, it was a slightly faster day than it usually was.

"Traffic is so bad, this is dumb."

Okay, so, maybe not to Hansol. Then again, Minghao doesn't have a car so he's able to be on his phone while driving, and he typically walks everywhere, so he wasn't familiar as to how frustrating it could be actually behind the wheel.

"It's always like this, don't you ever drive?"

He glanced over, shaking his head, "No, this is the first time I've used my car in about a week."

Minghao grimaced a little, sighing, "Sorry you had to use it cause of me."

Hansol smiled, putting his hand on Minghao's thigh and patting it lightly, "Hao, it's fine, don't worry."

The older smiled and nodded, playing a rhythm game on his phone. The car ride was probably about another 5-10 minutes before they parked, forcing Minghao to exit the level he was on and unbuckle to get out. The door on his side was opened before he could get too the handle, and he saw Hansol holding out a hand for him to grab. He took his hand, smiling and letting the younger hoist him out of the car and close it. He locked the car with his keys, leading them both up the steps and through the swinging doors. The two of them looked around the little sushi place, raising eyebrows.

"Do you see Jun or Soonyoung?"

Hansol shakes his head, looking around again, "No.. they said they were here, right?"

Minghao takes his phone out, nodding and looking at the texts again just in case.

"I'll text them again just in case."

 

**to: call me soon & not a burglar**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

where are you guys?? you said you were already here???

_Sent at 4:23 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto & call me soon**

**from: not a burglar**

soonyoung didn't tell you???

_Sent at 4:24 PM_

 

**to: call me soon & not a burglar**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

tell me what ? did you guys go to a different place??

_Sent at 4:24 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto & not a burglar**

**from: call me soon**

wen junhui shut the fuck up i swear to god

_Sent at 4:24 PM_

 

**to: call me soon & not a burglar**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

you guys did not do what the fuck i think you did you little shits

_Sent at 4:24 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto & call me soon**

**from: not a burglar**

if you're thinking of us ditching the sushi place to 'accidentally' make you and hansol go on a date then yes we did

_Sent at 4:25 PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto & not a burglar**

**from: call me soon**

you're fucking dead to me jun im omw to punch you out of this atmosphere

_Sent at 4:25 PM_

 

**to: call me soon & not a burglar**

**from: flaming hot cheeto**

you're both dead i dont care if my ligament rips apart im beating both of your asses when i get back there

_Sent at 4:26  PM_

 

**to: flaming hot cheeto & call me soon**

**from: not a burglar**

it was soonyoung's fault i'm not that mean

_Sent at 4:26 PM_

 

Minghao stared at his phone in frustration, his heart beating irregularly and he sighed, turning the convo on silent and then pocketing his phone.

"They ditched us, so it's just us."

Hansol raised his eyebrows, sighing and turning to the front entrance, "Do you wanna go back then? I mean, it was supposed to be a friend thing."

Minghao's heart swelled a little, getting caught in his throat for a split second. Before he could think about it, his mouth spit out words instead.

"No, let's just stay here."

The other's cheeks seemed to get a bit red- it was just the lighting, right? -and nodded, heading to the counter. He smiled politely at the hostess, keeping an arm around Minghao's waist to help him walk around.  _Maybe I should have brought my crutches, this is starting to hurt._

The hostess lead us to a little booth against the conveyor belt that was meant for couples to sit in. She smiled at us, handing us chopsticks and a little menu. Maybe this wasn't going to be too bad after all. Even if Minghao was a bit mad at the older two.

**\---**

The little ~~date~~ outing went by much faster than Minghao had wanted, the two eating their fill of sushi and poke and even a mini bowl of bulgogi until one of them (read: hansol) had to go to the bathroom to throw up a little bit of food from eating so much. Minghao laughed at him the whole time, little giggles spilling out of his mouth as they headed out of the restaurant. The two split the check, tipping the hostess gracefully before Minghao being practically carried out.

"You should have brought your crutches, you just elongated the amount of time it's going to take for you to recover, dude."

Minghao flicked his ear, causing the skin to turn red in that area, "I know that, brat. I was just trying to get here on time before the other two ditched us."

Hansol smiled, and Minghao didn't miss the way he stared at him for a little too long before opening the door for him like he did earlier. Minghao groaned, holding his leg a little so he doesn't jostle it around too much and make it even worse. He definitely couldn't forget his crutches tomorrow at class, he'd probably tear it just walking to the elevator tonight, but he didn't want to cause Hansol any more trouble.

"Thank you, y'know, for staying at the sushi place even though they ditched. I'm glad we hung out together." Hansol mumbled, starting the car engine.

Minghao's cheeks went a little red, smiling and looking down at his lap, pretending to be immersed in his phone screen.

"It was fun, thank you."

The music filled the comfortable silence between them as Hansol drove away from the sushi place (he learned it was called Forever Sushi), both humming along lightly to the pop they heard. They had spent a surprising amount of time in the restaurant, the clock nearing 6:30 and the sky nearly completely dark at this point. Neither realized it was so late already, the time seemed to go past like it was seconds while they were talking and laughing at and with each other. Even Minghao just thinking about the fun they had a little bit earlier made the car ride go by fast, and before he realized it, they were parking in a space up front again.

"Here, let me help you up. You'll probably break your leg if you go by yourself."

Minghao stuck his tongue out, crossing his arms over his chest and sighing, unbuckling himself after a moment.

"I'm not Mingyu, I won't magically break my leg from a torn ligament."

Hansol laughed a little, smiling and getting out of the car to help the other out again. This time, Minghao opened and started stepping out of the car before Hansol could reach him, part of him trying to prove a point; a point that he couldn't even find. Dignity? Maybe.

There was a hand on his forearm before Minghao was standing up, helping him keep balance and not put too much pressure on the injured ankle. He hopped out of the way of the car door before swinging it shut, sticking to Hansol's side like it was double sided tape. The two headed towards the front door, Hansol going first to push the door open and let Minghao through.

"I'm not some frail old man, Hansol. I can still whoop your ass even like this."

"And I don't doubt that, but right now you need to focus on not hurting your ankle any more. You wanna go back to dancing, right?"

Minghao groaned, nodding and pressing the elevator button when they reached the wall. It opened as he pressed it, nobody inside until the two of them stepped in. Hansol let the other lean against the wall as he pressed the 3 button, the doors closing a few moments later.

"Hansol, uh.. we should hang out more."

The younger didn't turn to look at him, but Minghao glanced at him for a moment too long, taking in his beanie and fluffed hair and soft nose.  _Cute._

Hansol's cheeks became a slight pinkish color, but it could just be from having to help Minghao everywhere he went. 

"Yeah, I'd like that, Hao."

Minghao's turn to look away, smiling at his feet and internally celebrating for making a little step to a better experience. The doors opened, and Hansol's arms were around Minghao's waist again, helping him out of the elevator and down the corridor. They stayed silent, an odd tension building between them until they reached dorm 314. Minghao turned to face Hansol, smiling at the younger and removing their arms from each other. 

"Thanks for helping me the whole time, sorry it might have been a bit of a hassle."

"We were sitting down for two hours, I only had to help you for a good total of about five minutes, so don't worry at all. It was enjoyable."

Neither really knew what to say after that, standing outside the dorm like an awkward first date ~~which was exactly what it was~~. It was almost too short to realize it, but there was a warm pressure against Minghao's lips for a split second that made him blink in a little daze. He looked back at Hansol, his cheeks having become considerably more red along with his ears.

"Hansol-?"

"Sorry, uh, for- forget I did that."

Hansol turned away, his head hanging a little in shame, but Minghao only stopped him and turned him back around. He cupped his jaw softly, leaning Hansol closer and staring into his eyes. That was the moment he realized how truly beautiful Hansol was.

From far away, you could only really notice his round eyes and sharp jaw. Squishy cheeks and soft nose that reminded him of a puppy. His eyes were like his favorite coffee brew, steaming with flecks of gold inside of them and he just wanted to drink them in all day. He could probably drown in his eyes, they made him feel warm and calm but also gave his chest a little bit of a rush.

"C-Can I kiss you? Properly?"

Hansol gulped, his eyes darting between Minghaos' own eyes and his lips, then nodded softly. He took the chance, leaning down slowly and pressing their mouths together. Short, sweet, and nothing like Minghao had ever experienced. It was addicting, almost, and he didn't want to pull away. He had to after a few moments, because he was pretty sure Hansol became warm putty in his palms and wouldn't be able to stand up. His cold hands reached up to press against his cheek, which he just realized was rather warm and probably pink as well.

"I'd like to do this more often.. me and you."

Minghao nodded, letting go of the younger and leaning back against the door, looking away and finding the carpet beside his shoes much more interesting.

"I'd like to, too. Thank you for today, Hansol."

Hansol smiled, nodding and grabbing Minghao's hand for a moment, "Thank you, too. I'll see you in class tomorrow."

Jun was right. Sometimes change is good. Really, really good.


End file.
